Air Defense

55K6A command post

Also known as
  • 55K6A
  • 55K6
  • 55K6E
  • PBU 55K6A
  • PBU 55K6E
  • S-400 command post
  • S-400 combat control post
  • S-400 C2P

The 55K6A is the Russian-service command-post component associated with the S-400 Triumf air-defense system. Open export literature describes the closely related 55K6E combat control post as the node that processes radar information, distributes targets, issues target designations, and links S-400 batteries with higher or neighboring command systems. In Ukraine, open-source loss trackers identify Russian 55K6A command posts destroyed during the full-scale war, making the component useful as a separately tracked command-and-control target rather than only as part of the broader S-400 launcher family.

55K6A command post, Mobile S-400 air-defense command post, Air Defense
Image source: Wikimedia Commons AirDefenseCombatReadiness2017-06

Role in Conflicts

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
Russia
Built by
Almaz-Antey
Type
Mobile S-400 air-defense command post
Service note
55K6/55K6E command-post family entered service with the S-400 family in 2007; 55K6A documented in Russian service during the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War
Designed
1990s S-400 development lineage; 55K6/55K6E command-post family entered service with the S-400 family in 2007
Produced
2000s-present
Developed from
S-300P-family command-post and air-defense control architecture

Specifications

System role
Combat control post for S-400-family air-defense units
Associated system
40R6 S-400 Triumf / SA-21 Growler
Export designation
55K6E in Rosoboronexport and several open technical references
Russian-service loss designation
55K6A in WarSpotting and Oryx Ukraine-loss reporting
Core tasks
Radar-information processing, target distribution, target designation, and interaction with neighboring or higher command systems
Chassis
Ural-532301 8x8 truck system in Deagel's 55K6E profile; Air Power Australia also places the 55K6E command post on an 8x8 Ural truck
Entered service
2007 with the S-400 family
Conflict documentation
WarSpotting records one Russian 55K6A command post destroyed in Kherson Oblast on 2023-05-20; Oryx lists two destroyed 55K6A command posts for S-400
Controlled Air-Defense System

The 55K6A/55K6E command-post line is documented as part of the S-400 command-and-control layer rather than as a launcher or interceptor.

Compatible itemItem typeCompatibility evidence
S-400 Triumf, Long-range mobile surface-to-air missile system, Air DefenseS-400 TriumfLong-range surface-to-air missile system

Rosoboronexport describes the 55K6E combat control post as controlling combat operations of the S-400 98Zh6E air-defense complex, processing radar information, distributing targets, and issuing target designations.

Sources: S-400 Triumph Rosoboronexport profile

Designation boundary

The available official export page uses 55K6E, while Ukraine-war loss trackers identify Russian-service losses as 55K6A. This record keeps both designations searchable and separates the direct 55K6A conflict row from broader S-400 system claims.

Sources: S-400 Triumph Rosoboronexport profile, WarSpotting 55K6A loss record

Command-Post Role

The 55K6A/55K6E sits in the control layer of the S-400 system. It is not an interceptor launcher; its value comes from taking air-picture data from sensors, assigning targets, and connecting the battery or division with adjacent and higher command systems.

Radar data

Rosoboronexport states that the 91N6E radar provides radar information to the 55K6E combat control post.

Fire-control tasking

The same source describes target distribution and target-designation issue as core 55K6E combat-control tasks.

Network role

Air Power Australia describes 55K6/55K6E command posts as S-400 battery command posts with interfaces and software for S-400 Triumf radar systems and broader integrated-air-defense links.

Conflict evidence

The direct 55K6A conflict row is based on identified Russian component-loss records in Kherson Oblast, not on every S-400 deployment in the war.

Sources: S-400 Triumph Rosoboronexport profile; Air Power Australia air defence command posts; WarSpotting 55K6A loss record.

Timeline

55K6A command post Key Events

  1. 55K6 service entry tied to S-400 IOC

    Deagel lists the 55K6 command post with an initial operational capability date of 2007-04-28 and associates the 55K6E with each S-400 battalion or system.

    Sources: Deagel 55K6 profile

  2. Kherson Oblast command post loss

    WarSpotting records a Russian 55K6A command post for the 40R6 S-400 Triumf destroyed in Kherson Oblast.

    Sources: WarSpotting 55K6A loss record

  3. Kherson S-400 command-post strike reported

    Army Recognition reported a Ukrainian strike on a Russian 55K6E S-400 command post and described the command post as the system component that analyzes radar data and coordinates S-400 operations.

    Sources: Army Recognition 55K6E Kherson command-post destruction report

Media

55K6A command post Images

55K6A command post, Mobile S-400 air-defense command post, Air Defense - view 1
Source: Wikimedia Commons AirDefenseCombatReadiness2017-08
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Sources

S-400 Triumph Rosoboronexport profilePublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Official export product page supporting the 55K6E combat control post's role in the S-400/98Zh6E system, radar-information processing, target distribution, target designation, and interaction with neighboring and higher command systems. | Accessed: 2026-07-05WarSpotting 55K6A loss recordPublisher: WarSpotting | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct conflict use: records a Russian 55K6A command post for the 40R6 S-400 Triumf destroyed in Kherson Oblast on 2023-05-20. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Army Recognition 55K6E Kherson command-post destruction reportPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct conflict use by reporting a Ukrainian strike on a Russian S-400 command post, using the 55K6E designation and describing its S-400 command-and-control role. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Oryx Russian equipment losses in UkrainePublisher: Oryx | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct conflict use by listing two destroyed Russian 55K6A command posts for S-400 in its photo- or video-documented Russian equipment-loss list. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Deagel 55K6 profilePublisher: Deagel | Note: Supports the 55K6/55K6E mobile command-post profile, Russian origin, S-400 association, Ural-532301 8x8 chassis, 2007 IOC, and operator background. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Air Power Australia air defence command postsPublisher: Air Power Australia | Note: Supports 55K6/55K6E command-post relationship to the S-400, broad integrated-air-defense role, Ural truck context, and distinction from S-300PMU2 command-post architecture. | Accessed: 2026-07-05CSIS Missile Threat S-400 TriumfPublisher: Center for Strategic and International Studies Missile Threat | Note: Supports S-400 family background, Russian origin, 2007 service entry, SA-21 Growler reporting name, and S-300 development lineage. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Wikimedia Commons AirDefenseCombatReadiness2017-06Publisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for the primary 55K6E/S-400 readiness image, attributed to the Russian Ministry of Defence and licensed CC BY 4.0 on Commons. | Accessed: 2026-07-05Wikimedia Commons AirDefenseCombatReadiness2017-08Publisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for the additional 55K6E/S-400 readiness gallery image, attributed to the Russian Ministry of Defence and licensed CC BY 4.0 on Commons. | Accessed: 2026-07-05